Becoming Neoliberal Subjects: Power and Identity Formation in a Mentorship Program for Latino Boys

Abstract

A growing number of school districts are seeking to remedy the achievement gap experienced by Latino boys through mentorship programs. Indicative of neoliberal shifts in education, these programs often involve public-private partnerships and assume a damaged Latino boy in need of innovative solutions, rather than structural changes. Through an ethnographic case study of one Latino male mentorship program, this study explores the ways the administrative power of Latino male programming constructs the ideal subject through neoliberal values of individualism, earning potential, and pushes boys to be the future hetero-patriarchs of their community. Furthermore, based on interviews with mentors and students, as well as one year of participant observations, this paper uncovers the ways these discourses are lived and embodied.